Jami Snyder, director of AHCCCS, has announced her intention to leave her position at the end of 2022. Snyder has served as the agency’s director since 2019.
“I have been incredibly fortunate to have had the opportunity to serve in a leadership role for one of the most respected Medicaid programs in the country,” Snyder said. “Spearheading the work of a state agency that impacts the lives of almost 2.5 million Arizonans has been demanding, exciting, and immensely rewarding.”
Snyder was appointed by Governor Doug Ducey on Jan. 5, 2019 after having served as AHCCCS deputy director, and director of Texas’ Medicaid program prior to that.
“I’m deeply grateful to have had Jami Snyder’s talent, acumen, and compassion at the head of AHCCCS over the last four years," said Governor Ducey. "Under her leadership, AHCCCS navigated an unprecedented health care pandemic, expanded Arizona students’ access to behavioral health services, and moved 80 percent of the AHCCCS workforce to full-time remote work, saving taxpayers $1.2 million. She has navigated extremely complicated health care issues during her tenure, always with a focus on the best interest of the Arizonans she serves. The state thanks her for all she has done for its citizens and her dedicated leadership.”
Under Snyder’s direction, AHCCCS has received national recognition for its innovative approach to solving persistent health care issues with a focus on whole person care and social factors that affect wellness. Since March 2020, Snyder has led the agency in navigating through the COVID-19 pandemic, working with the federal government to ensure that AHCCCS members maintained continuous Medicaid enrollment and access to health care services, and financially securing the viability of a network of more than 120,000 providers. During the pandemic, AHCCCS distributed $126 million to providers, including nursing facilities, assisted living facilities, home and community based service providers, and critical access hospitals; and allocated $1 billion in federal rescue funds to enhance the delivery system serving individuals with disabilities and behavioral health needs. Snyder has also been recognized for her workplace transformation efforts and her success in spearheading advancements aimed at improving access to care while bending the health care cost curve.
Snyder is the immediate past-president of the National Association of Medicaid Directors, an organization she has been an active member of since 2016. She is the eighth AHCCCS director since the program started in 1982.
